BritCan Television
BritCan Television is an American pay television channel launched on January 25, 1988 that serves as the flagship property of BritCan Entertainment through its television networks division, headquartered in New York City. As of September 2018, BritCan Television is received by approximately 89.094 million pay television households in the United States. History Background, launch, and early years BritCan Television Productions, Inc. was originally established in 1981, and within the next two years, became a prominent producer and distributor of syndicated series originally seen on broadcast network television. On June 5, 1986, BCP president and chief executive Britney Candace-Moore acquired the pre-May 1986 library of films, cartoons, and television shows from Maxine Pictures; in the following month, the entirety of the studio was bought from original owner Van-Turner Enterprises for $1.5 billion, forming BritCan Media, Inc. Following the sale, as well as subsequent reports that persisted for over a year, Candace-Moore formally announced the launch of the BritCan Television Network (BTN) on September 18, 1987, marking her first foray into the entertainment landscape. The new cable network, set to be available at a monthly rate of 15¢ per subscriber (later increased to 25¢ in January 1989), would focus on culled programming from the respective libraries of BTP and Maxine, including theatrical films, made-for-cable movies, miniseries, documentaries, and "high profile" events. The new network launched on January 25, 1988 at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, with a launch party special hosted by Candace-Moore, as well as previews of the channel's programming. At the time of its launch, BTN was available to an estimated 18.5 million subscribers – overtaking VH1's 1985 launch as the largest cable network debut in history – and aired daily from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. Eastern Time. BTN initially served as an outlet for BTP-produced situation comedies and game shows, in addition to the library of films and television series to which Maxine either produced themselves, held rights to, or acquired specifically for the channel's lineup. Staples of BTN's early programming schedule included BTN Funhouse, a block of animated children's series airing from 7:00 to 8:30 a.m. Eastern on weekdays and until 9:00 a.m. on weekends; Moviethon, a showcase of the network's film library that aired over the course of Memorial Day weekend; and Saturday Saloon, a block of western and crime drama shows that aired on Saturday afternoons. Shift to general entertainment TBA Programming Main article: List of programs broadcast by BritCan Television News See also: BritCan News BritCan Television is one of the few U.S. general-entertainment cable channels that broadcasts a daily news program; its flagship entertainment news program ''BritCan News'' debuted on September 28, 2009. The hour-long weekday program (which also has a weekend edition) features current stories around the world with a focus on social media and entertainment, and is also primarily recorded from Studio 8 at BritCan Center in New York, with a secondary studio in Los Angeles, California. Leslie Bookers and Angela O'Harris have served as the show's hosts since 2014. Category:TV Channels Category:BritCan Television Category:BritCan Communications